Ready, Set, Action!
by Smrtypantz
Summary: The Wammy House is having a little contest to celebrate the end of the year exams…a movie making contest! How well will Mello, Matt, and Near do? They've all been grouped together, after all.
1. Let's Begin!

A/N: Well, this is my first attempt at a multi-chapter fic, so I hope you enjoy reading this!

Let's Begin!

With one final stroke of his pencil, Mello completed his math test…the last exam of the year! Finally!

The bell rang and all of the orphans left their classrooms to run outside, free at last! Time for some summer fun.

Mello raced out of the room with the other children, swiftly pulling out a chocolate bar from his pocket on the way. The blond boy ran outside, jumped in the air, and took in the first of many sunny, bright summer days.

"Mello, wait up!" a boy with goggles shouted. Matt caught up to Mello in a matter of seconds, completely winded. Matt didn't like physical activity, much less the outdoors. "C'mon man, let's go play some video games to celebrate! I finally got that new game I wanted, the one where a cheat code can allow the gladiator to have invulnerability against the sky dragon, and I really wanted to use the lightening ax-"

But Mello wasn't listening. He was staring wide-eyed at a limo parked outside the Wammy House gates. Could it be? No, of course not.

Could it?

L's limo? Was L here?!

Before Mello knew it, the door opened and out popped the greatly admired, candy-loving, barefoot, world famous detective. As if this day couldn't get any better!

Mello, now carrying what appeared to be a permanent smile on his face, ran to his hero, who accepted him with wide, open arms. The hug was short; there were many other orphans who wanted hugs as well, and L had to give everyone an equal amount of attention.

Questions were flying everywhere as L continued to embrace each and every child. _L, how are you?! _or _I was looking over that latest case in Italy! How'd you solve it?_ or _L, what're you doin' here? Is something special going on?_

L answered that last question. "As a matter of fact," he started while hugging three different children in his arms, "there is something of importance. I'm sure Roger will tell you once I get settled in."

The crowd of kids followed L into the large building. Matt, who had thought he was talking to Mello as of five seconds ago, confronted his chocolate-loving friend. "Mello, I was talking to a bush this whole time! You could've told me L was here!"

"The past is the past. Now come on! L said he's here for something important! I bet you anything it's to announce that I finally beat Near!" Mello said this last statement with his head held high and his fist to his chest.

Matt looked over at the door the crowd was disappearing into. "Speaking of Near…"

Mello looked over to see a small, white-haired boy carrying a toy robot follow the crowd, although lacking the enthusiasm of the other children. The chocoholic proceeded to roll his eyes. Well, the little albino, although thoroughly annoying, would be unable to ruin his day. The exams were over, L was here, and he was currently eating his favorite chocolate while hanging out with his best friend. If Near thought he was going to spoil this perfect day, he had another thing coming!

Mello, grabbing Matt's arm, proceeding to shove past Near, "ignoring" the small boy the entire time. There were more important matters to attend to.

* * *

"Now, now, children, everyone just settle- no, no, no! Get off the table! Everyone, just please- BE QUIET!" Roger shouted at the orphans as they all sat down in the common room. Glaring, the old man cleared his throat and looked towards L. The famous detective was currently seated in his favorite armchair while eating a slice of strawberry shortcake.

"As I was saying…" Roger began, "L has come to visit us for the next couple of weeks. He's done with his cases for now and won't be taking anymore until his visit ends. Since the exams are over, both Watari and L thought it would be nice to have a small…_contest_. Everyone will separate into teams of three. No, not yet!" he shouted as people began to run towards their friends.

"Now then…this will be a movie making contest. We will provide the script and you can all get started immediately. Watari, L, and I will be the judges. If you need our assistance at any point, feel free to ask. The deadline is in two weeks. Now, I've placed the scripts on this table, so if you would all please form an orderly line, we can- NO! I said an orderly line! Don't just grab them!" Roger ran into the throng of children surrounding the table.

Mello and Matt (the ones who caused the ruckus of running towards the table in the first place) emerged from the crowd with scripts in their hands.

"Let's see what it says here…" Mello began as he looked down at the script. "It's called The Valiant Rescue…huh. Never heard of it." The blond boy began to sift through the script. Matt, on the other hand, was looking around the chaotic room in confusion.

"Uh…Mello?" he started.

"Not now, Matt, I'm trying to find the hero!"

"But Mello…"

"What?!" the chocoholic practically screamed into Matt's face.

"We don't have a third partner."

Mello, taken aback by that statement, finally realized the severity of this situation. What if they got some loser that couldn't memorize any lines?! Or…or what if they got stuck with _Near_?!

The latter turned out to be true.

As they both stood there, Near had been patiently waiting for the crowd surrounding the table to disperse so that he could take hold of a script. After doing so, he finally realized that he didn't have any partners. Near confronted L and Roger, and within seconds, he was paired with Mello and Matt.

Mello took one look at the albino twirling his hair, turned to Matt, and said, "This is going to be a long two weeks."

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are welcomed. I hope to update fairly soon. :)


	2. Preparation

A/N: Well, here's chapter 2!

Disclaimer: I forgot last time, so I'll put it up now. I don't own death note, I never will, and now I just made myself sad. :(

Preparation

"Ok, troops, it appears that the next two weeks are going to be a struggle due to some rather _unwanted_ cast members. Therefore- yes, Matt?" Mello asked as he was cut off by his best friend. Currently, the three boys were sitting outside in the enormous backyard of the Wammy House. Mello had been pacing before both Near and Matt with a stick in his hand, commanding authority.

"Why did you say _unwanted_ cast members? Do you not want to be my friend or something?" the goggled boy asked sadly.

"I was talking about Near!" the blond boy shouted as he pointed a finger at the albino. Near, unperturbed by Mello's latest statement, continued to twirl his hair next to Matt.

"Now then, as I was _saying_, we need to find art supplies for the background setting, props for our characters, and we especially need to choose who is playing who. Ok, so the three characters in this movie are the hero, Harold the Gladiator, the villain, Melvin the Villain, and the princess, Princess Sparkles. Now then- what is it Matt?!" This was getting slightly annoying.

Matt was frantically raising his hand as if he was in a classroom and he desperately wanted to share his answer. "Ooh! Ooh! I wanna be the princess!!"

Both Mello and Near, completely taken aback by this statement, stared at Matt as if he had grown an extra limb. The red-headed boy looked about him at the two unwavering faces. "What?" he asked. "I wanna be the princess! So, what's the big deal?"

"Matt…" Mello began slowly. "Why the _hell_ do you want to be the princess?!" the blond boy shouted towards Matt's face, arms flying in the air.

"She reminds me of Zelda! And in Super Smash Bros. Zelda turns into Sheik, so it's like she's a ninja, which is totally better than a gladiator if you ask me. Besides-"

"I have no problem with Matt being the princess," Near cut in.

Mello looked towards his arch nemesis. "Yeah, well, nobody asked you!" The chocoholic grabbed his favorite treat from his pocket, undid the wrapping, and began to eat the chocolate bar viciously. He needed to compose himself.

Once he finished, he stuffed the empty wrapper back in his pocket and began pacing, once again commanding supreme authority. "Ok, so since Matt's going to be the princess, it looks like I'll be the hero and Near shall be the villain…which makes perfect sense, if you ask me, because the good guys always _win_ and the bad guys always _lose_." Mello, arms crossed, was wearing a triumphant smile on his face.

"Mello…" Near began. "Perhaps you should read the end of the script because-"

"I said nobody asked you!" the blond boy screamed into Near's face.

Mello stopped pacing and now stood in front of the two boys sitting on the grass. "Now then, I'm in charge of the costumes and props since I'm the most well-dressed of our group," the blond declared with a smirk. "Matt, you'll be with Near in building the set because, well, Near's good at stacking things. Ready? Go!" And with that final statement, Mello ran back into the Wammy House.

Matt and Near merely sat there, watching the blond run inside the House. The goggled boy, bored, took out his DS and began to play. Near continued to sit there twirling his hair. He had forgotten to bring any toys with him outside, and now he wished he had. Looking down, the little albino spotted the script and began to read through it. They would need to know the scenery now that they've been put in charge of it.

* * *

After about 5 minutes, Near finished reading the script. The white-haired boy, turning towards Matt, who, from the sound of his profanity, was losing the game, stated, "Matt, we will require 30 large poster boards, about 20 sticks, preferably wooden, a large box, two buckets of silver paint, hot glue with a hot glue gun, a 64 pack of crayons, two chairs, gold ribbon, a phone, and a stuffed animal dog."

"Done."

Near, taken aback by Matt's statement, looked behind the gamer to see everything he had just requested. "How…?"

"Yeah, sorry, I couldn't find a stuffed animal dog, but I got everything else," the redhead stated nonchalantly.

"Matt…how did you acquire all of these items so quickly?" This wasn't logical at all.

"Well, I'm Mello's sidekick, so I have to be good at gettin' stuff fast. This was actually pretty easy," he said while continuing to play on his DS.

Suddenly, it made perfect sense.

"Very well, then. Matt, I also require your help in creating the sets."

"Yeah, sure, just a sec…" he said as he continued to click buttons at a rapid pace.

* * *

Mello had just run into the Wammy House. Time to find the costumes!

Sneaking past a group of children, he quickly made his way to the bedrooms. 'Now then,' he thought, 'where can I find a princess outfit?' Looking back, he spotted a small group of girls. 'Linda's room!'

On this tip toes, Mello pressed his body against a wall and quietly made his way down the hall to Linda's room. She had to have a princess outfit of some sort!

As soon as he saw her closed door, he pressed his ear against it and listened closely. Hearing nothing, he rapidly managed to open the door, squeeze himself through, and shut the door in one swoop. 'Made it!'

Looking about him, he noticed that there was a lot of…_pink_ in this room. It made him want to puke. 'Ok, ok, just ignore the pink…think of black! Think of manly things! Like…like American football! Yeah, that's it…ok, now then, where would a girl carry a princess outfit…?' Turning towards his right, he caught a glimpse of an article of clothing peeking out from behind a door. 'The closet, of course!'

Mello made his way towards the door, opened it slowly, and witnessed a whole mess of…of _girl clothes_. 'Ew…'

Sifting through the outfits, Mello finally caught sight of a dress. He grabbed it quickly and held it out before himself. 'I just hope Linda doesn't notice this is missing…and that Matt doesn't kill me.'

* * *

"Mello, I'm going to kill you!!" Matt screamed at the blond boy's face.

The chocoholic saw this coming. "What's wrong with it?!"

"Dude, this thing is _pink_!" Matt shouted in disgust.

"Well, you wanted to be the princess!" Mello retorted.

"Yeah, but this is so…so _girly_!"

Mello just shook his head. "Matt…" he started out slowly. "Since when did you think _for once_ that the character _Princess Sparkles_ was going to be the slightest bit MANLY?!" he cried, arms in the air.

Near stood out of the range of the arguing boys. He looked at his own outfit in his arms, a Darth Vader costume. He never liked wearing anything other than pajamas, but he really wanted to win this contest, so it would have to do. He carefully placed the helmet (which was missing the front, so your face would be exposed) on his head and turned to the two boys. "Mello, would you care to show us your costume?"

Mello immediately stopped arguing. "Well…" he said, smiling. "Sure, I mean, if you really _want_ to." The blond grabbed his costume and ran inside the Wammy House to change. Mello _always_ loved flaunting his "great" sense of fashion.

After a few minutes, Mello stepped outside, adorned in what appeared to be a Roman gladiator costume, complete with a shield, sword, and helmet. The blond boy paraded around both Matt and Near, waving his sword in the air. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Yeah, it is…so tell me again, why is my dress _pink_?!"

The arguing started all over again.

Near decided to leave the two boys alone for now and continued working on the sets. This would take a couple of hours to complete, and the sooner he started, the better.

* * *

Matt and Mello had eventually stopped arguing and decided to help complete the sets. After three days, they had set up the villain's throne and evil lair, the maze, the jail cell, and the hero's secret hideout.

It was now noon, and they were ready to film the first scene. Mello was getting ready, memorizing the scene's lines, until Near noticed something…something missing.

"Mello…" he began. "Do we have a camera?"

* * *

A/N: lol. That was my sad attempt at a cliffhanger. Oh, and if you don't know, Linda was a girl at the Wammy House that drew those two pictures of Mello and Near for the Kira investigation. :)


	3. Missing Items

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews!! I really want to update soon, but I'll be on vacation for the next two weeks. :( It figures that when I start my first multi-chaptered fic that this would happen, but I'll try to update! Promise. :)

Missing Items

And so, the three boys were left to ponder about the whereabouts of a potential camcorder. After 15 minutes of thinking, they decided it was best to ask their hero instead.

"L!!" Mello shouted, zooming across the room to where the famous detective was sitting in his favorite armchair. The blond boy pounced on top of candy-loving man, who caught the child in his arms and held him in the air in front of him.

"What seems to be the problem, Mello?" the detective asked, tilting his head to one side questioningly.

Matt and Near finally caught up from behind and raced into the room, finally stopping to stand before their idol. The detective noticed that all three boys were in their costumes. "L!!" Matt shouted in a…was that a _pink_ dress? "We need your help!"

"Yeah!" Mello agreed. "We don't have a camcorder, so we can't shoot the movie!"

"I see…" L began. "Well, I'm very sorry, but all of the groups have already gotten their cameras. Roger has none left to spare. Perhaps you can borrow from another team. Linda's team has an extra, so-"

"Uh, that's not such a great idea," Mello interrupted, guilt written across his features.

"Really now?" L asked. "And why is that so?"

There was an awkward silence before Matt interjected, "Wait! My princess outfit is _Linda's_ dress?!"

L just stared at the boys before him. Mello, looking entirely at fault, Matt, looking traumatized, and Near, looking completely bored out of his mind. However, it was Near who had finally said something during this uncomfortable moment. "What do you suggest we do, L?"

L, regaining his composure, advised, "Perhaps you can raise money to buy a camcorder. Then, I shall personally escort you to the mall to purchase one."

"But L…" Mello began. "Why can't you just buy one _for_ us? We're the top three kids at Wammy's!"

"Ah, but Mello, that would not teach you the value of money or responsibility," the detective stated.

"But everyone else got their cameras for free!" Mello argued. This wasn't very fair.

"Mello…" Near began. "I have an idea."

* * *

"Near, this is the stupidest idea you've ever had!" Mello screamed at the white-haired boy's face.

"Lemonade, get your lemonade here!" Matt continued to shout from the little stand the three boys were currently sitting behind. In front of them was a big pitcher of the lemonade they made earlier that day. It had taken them three hours to make, but they did it. However, during that time, they hadn't changed out of their costumes. So, the gladiator, Darth Vader, and the princess continued to wave lemons and signs in the air, hoping to attract some potential customers.

"Well, Mello, perhaps you have a better idea?" Near asked. He was slightly annoyed, one reason being that his idea wasn't working, and the second reason being that he was the only one who had decided to come up with anything at all. Mello merely continued to glare at the little albino.

After about an hour, the three boys finally spotted someone across the street. Was he…was he walking towards _them_? A first costumer?!

"Hello there, uh, gentlemen," the man said smiling, although eyeing Matt warily. "I'd like to buy some lemonade."

Mello was ecstatic. He immediately grabbed a cup and poured in some lemonade. "Why thank you, gentlemen," the man said while taking a sip. "How much do I owe you?"

"That will be 350 please," Near stated. The man practically spit out his drink.

Coughing, the man asked, "Um, wh- why is this so expensive?"

L had been watching the three boys through the window of the Wammy House. He just spotted the man practically spitting out his drink. The famous detective walked outside and confronted the man. "What seems to be the problem, sir?" he asked.

"Uh, well, I'm willing to pay 50¢ for the drink, but these boys want…what was it again? 350?"

"Ah, yes," L began. "These three boys are trying to raise enough money to buy a camcorder. However, 50¢ per drink is perfectly acceptable. Now then, you may pay these boys that amount and you can be on your way."

The man grabbed two quarters from his pocket, dropped them on the stand, and quickly walked away. L turned his head to the three boys. "Your efforts were valiant. I believe you have learned the value of money. I will now proceed to take you to the mall."

"L…" Near began, sounding doubtful. "We've only acquired 50¢."

"I will pay for the rest," their idol said with a smile.

* * *

And so, L set off with the three boys to the nearest mall. However, L had made sure that the boys changed into their normal outfits first.

Mello was overjoyed at riding in a limo. He was constantly unbuckling his seatbelt to peer outside the back window. Finally, he got Matt to join him and the duo began making faces at the cars behind them.

At last, they had reached the mall. Mello eagerly grasped one of L's hands. Matt decided to pull out his DS while Near remained off to the side. They approached several stores and finally purchased a camcorder, a memory card, and a few blank DVD's. It only took about a half hour to complete. With time to spare, L decided to take the three boys to the candy store, his absolute favorite place to be.

Mello raced over to the fudge, pressing his body against the glass counter while peering in.

"Remember boys, only one item," L stated while eyeing the giant, swirly lollipops. Matt wandered to the gummy section and began filling a bag with gummy worms, his favorite. As soon as they were through, the detective purchased the items and began walking back towards the mall's exit with Mello and Matt.

The chocoholic was currently munching on some fudge while the redhead ate his gummy worms. And Near was…was…wait.

"Where's Near?" L asked in a panic as he turned to face the two boys behind him.

"Uh…" the two boys muttered in unison.

* * *

Near happened to be in the toy store, gazing at the new limited edition Robo Cop 3500 with specially attached equipment, including the laser, firing net gun, and jet pack. But no matter what, Near was just too short to actually reach it.

The small boy kept trying to reach the high shelf. He attempted many different scenarios to retrieve the toy, such as stacking a pile of blocks to climb up, grabbing a toy to throw at the robot to make it crash to the floor, and even trying to climb the shelves themselves.

Finally giving up, Near began to turn around, fully prepared to find L, Mello, and Matt behind him. "Could one of you please lift me?" But when Near finally spun around, he found that no one was there. Twirling a lock of his hair, he approached the counter to where he had spotted a cashier earlier. "Sir, I appear to be lost."

* * *

"NEAR!! Oh Near!! Where are you?!"

The detective and two of his potential successors were currently running through the mall attempting to coax the white-haired boy out of hiding. "Wait!" L shouted suddenly.

The three of them all stopped in their tracks. L continued, "If we really wish to find Near, we have to think like Near. Now, where would he be?"

And at the same time, all three had an epiphany. "The toy store!"

* * *

Near was found in the toy store. They thanked the cashier for looking over the boy. Back in the limo, L began to scold the pajama-wearing child.

"Near, you cannot just run off like that! We were all very concerned," he stated.

"Pssh, I wasn't," Mello disagreed.

Near looked up towards his hero and complained, "But L, I was looking for something."

"I have already told you Near," L began, "you can receive that robot toy on your upcoming birthday. You had no right to run off like that."

"But L, we still need a stuffed animal dog, and the logical place to look for one would be in the toy store."

Matt finally looked up from the video game he been playing during the time. "Oh yeah! L, we don't have one…."

L looked at the three boys and recalled the script. "Ah, I see. You need a stuffed animal dog for one of the characters?"

Near continued with his earlier explanation as to why he was missing. "Yes. L, the hero in the story has a dog and since we don't have an actor for one, we were going to use a stuffed animal."

The detective paused to think. Licking his lollipop, he had an idea.

* * *

The very next day, the three boys were _finally_ ready to film. They had their costumes, the set, the scripts, the first scene memorized, and all of their characters.

L decided, after waving goodbye to his pride, to put on dog ears and play the dog. It was only for one scene, after all.

And so, the filming began.

* * *

A/N: Once again, my sad attempt at a cliffhanger. :) Reviews of all sorts are welcomed! Critiques on how to improve my writing would be nice :D


	4. First Scene Mayhem

A/N: Thanks for all your reviews! They make me feel special. :)

So, here's the next chapter. Sorry it's so late…I might not be able to update for a few more days however, so I'm hoping this chapter will suffice XD

First Scene Mayhem

Matt prepared the camcorder carefully on its tripod. Apparently, he was the only one in the group smart enough to not need to read the camera's manual. After making sure everything was ready, he shouted to his group, "Ready over here!"

Mello was currently in his gladiator costume, rehearsing his lines for about the tenth time that day. He responded to Matt, saying, "Ready over here, too!"

Near, having no part until the very end of this scene, patiently sat in a director's chair he had found in the Wammy House basement. He had to admit to himself that this whole charade was actually turning out to be…_fun_.

L was currently looking over the script for a last time, making sure to have each of his lines memorized. The dog ears kept getting in the way, however. L decided then and there that he would no longer hold contests such as these at the end of exams…But, like Near, he had to admit that for the time being, this was actually _somewhat_ enjoyable.

All three boys, he observed, appeared to be ecstatic about making a movie. Okay, so perhaps he would continue to hold contests at the end of exams…however, he would make sure scripts stuck to three characters only.

Matt carefully angled the camera so that it was facing the set of the first scene. "Mello, you're up!"

Mello waltzed over to the set. The first scene took place in the hero's secret hideout. The background was just a painting of a cave. The real props, however, consisted of a desk, computer, and swivel chair. Mello jumped into his seat, a proud look on his face. "Watch and learn, Near. You'll be witnessing the brilliance of my acting skills."

Near continued to stay perched in his seat, twirling his hair.

"Ready, Mello?" Matt asked.

"I was born ready!" was the boy's response.

"Ready, L?"

"I suppose I am," L answered, a little reluctant to play his role. Curse his love for the Wammy children.

"Well then…" Matt began. "Ready…set…act- "

"Wait!" the blond shouted. "I _need_ my thinking chocolate." The boy crossed his arms and began to pout.

"Mello, what the hell, are you serious?!" Matt shouted at the chocoholic from behind the camera.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, _Matt_, I am quite serious. I can't act without my thinking chocolate! Do you want this movie to be a successful blockbuster or _not_?!"

The redhead sighed in defeat. "Okay, if I get you chocolate, will you do the scene?" he bribed.

The blond nodded the affirmative. Matt headed off the kitchens to get his best friend his chocolate, like he always did.

Mello continued to sit in the swivel chair, spinning himself by pushing his legs against the desk. Life was looking good…chocolate, acting with L, and his character was an awesome gladiator! The boy pushed and pushed until the chair was spinning at a rapid pace. He was so happy! Nothing could ruin this moment!

_CRASH_

* * *

"Ow! Stop that, Matt! OW! Oh, ow ow ow ow ow _ow_…Matt, I'm going to kill you!" Mello kept shouting at the boy who was trying very hard to disinfect the scrape on the blond kid's leg. After spraying the disinfectant on his scrape, Matt took out a band-aid with a picture of a princess and placed in on the small injury.

"There. You got what you deserved, you know…" Matt said to Mello as he stood up to put the band aid box back into the medicine cabinet. L and Near were sitting off to the side, watching the two boys.

"What do you mean I 'deserved' it? It was Near's fault!" Mello exclaimed while pointing a finger at the small boy twirling his hair.

"Mello, _please_, quit being ridiculous. Now your character looks funny because he has a _princess_ band-aid on his leg…"

"Um, _hello_?! You're the one who gave me this band-aid!" he retorted, now pointing an accusing finger at his best friend. "And besides, _Matt_, you're still in the princess outfit! You're not even in the first scene!"

"It's called 'getting into character' Mello. Look it up, would you?!"

Near stared at the scene before him. Did he have to break up yet _another_ argument between these two boys?

"Clumsy gladiator!"

"Ugly princess!"

Apparently, he did. "You know…" he began. "We only have a few hours to shoot the first scene. Will you continue your argument some other time?"

The arguing boys stared at Darth Vader and reluctantly nodded their heads.

The group of four left the bathroom and headed out into the hall.

"Oh wait!" Matt exclaimed. "Let me get my laptop so we can just upload the video footage from outside!" With that, the princess ran down another stretch of hallway going in the opposite direction.

L bit his thumb while leading the two boys that remained towards the yard where they were supposed to have filmed earlier. During the walk, however, he noticed the pigtails of a small girl around a corner. _'I believe I recognize that girl…Linda.'_

Linda turned the corner after waving a goodbye to one of her friends and came face to face with L, Mello, and Near. Upon seeing the blond boy, she noticed that there was a _princess_ band-aid on his leg…_ 'Uh…'_

"Mello…?" she questioned awkwardly. "Why is there a princess band-aid on your leg?"

"Because stupid Near tripped me, that's why!" Mello shouted at the girl.

Linda rolled her eyes and rephrased her question by saying, "No, I mean, why a princess?"

"Because stupid Matt put it on my leg! Huh…you know, this princess looks a lot like him, actually…" Mello muttered while staring at his leg.

"Wait," Linda began. "You mean to tell me that _Matt's_ playing Princess Sparkles?" The look on her face was a mixture of disgust, awe, and uneasiness.

With that, she looked up to see that L was sporting a pair of dog ears. Behind L was Near, wearing a…a Darth Vader costume.

"Uh…you guys, um, have…fun," she said awkwardly, waving a goodbye to the odd group she had stumbled upon.

Mello stared after her as she left. _'Psh, weirdo.'_

* * *

Linda walked down the hallway to her room. _'I can't believe Matt's playing Princess Sparkles. Why didn't they just use a Barbie doll or something…? Well, he always has struck me as being a little…eccentric? I wonder where he got a dress to play the role…'_

Linda paused in her thinking then and there. She had been missing one of her princess dresses for a while…Did…did _Matt_ take her _dress_?!

'…_you know, this princess looks a lot like him…'_

The princess on the band-aid was wearing a pink dress…just like hers.

Linda was _really_ pissed off….

* * *

"Matt, are you ready with your laptop already?!" Mello shouted at his best friend.

"Mello, just shut up! I'm trying to work here!" the redhead exclaimed, fed up with Mello's constant shouting. Honestly, the only reason everything was going so slowly was because of Mello, anyway. After finally gaining his Wi-Fi access, he shouted, "Ready over here!" for the second time that day. "Mello, are _you_ ready?" he asked, irritated.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm ready," Mello said, glaring at his best friend.

"No spinning? Any chocolate you need? A massage, perhaps?" Matt questioned, getting on Mello's nerves.

"I'm _fine_," the blond repeated with finality.

"Ok, so, L, get on the set…Mello, get your butt on the swivel chair…Mello, c'mon I doubt you'll fall again…wait, L, no, just get underneath the chair…yeah, like a dog…ok, everyone ready? Yeah? Ok! Ready…set…act- "

"MATT, I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!!"

"Wha-"

Matt never got to complete his sentence when suddenly, a group of three girls, one of them Linda, jumped out from behind him.

* * *

L had watched the entire scene with mild amusement. Matt, in a pink princess outfit, getting attacked by three small girls. The little redhead didn't appear to be hurt, just traumatized. Well, he did get hurt once Mello stepped in, which caused all the girls to gang up on both boys until Linda finally punched the two in the head. That's when he stepped in. But, as for now, L had to pay attention to the current situation at hand…holding ice packs on the heads of two squirming boys.

"_L_, it's too _cold_…" Mello complained.

"Now, now, Mello," L began, "ice is good when you've suffered a minor injury to the head. It will clear up the bump in no time."

Mello muttered something incoherent under his breath, but remained still after that. Matt was still squirming, but a DS in the boy's hands would fix that.

Near watched the scene in front of him while twirling his hair. He wasn't really paying attention to the fiasco in front of him. He much more enjoyed contemplating the former scuffle in the yard. Near had decided not to get involved with the whole dress epidemic. It was a good thing that L had stepped in when he did, for it looked like Linda was ready to tear the dress off Matt then and there, and he wasn't sure if his eyes could handle that.

Well, at least Mello had confessed to being the one to steal Linda's dress and Matt had decided to give the dress back to her once the movie was finished.

* * *

Back outside for a third time, the group set to work on the first scene.

Matt, his bump still aching, had decided to tape the ice pack to his head. He fiddled with the equipment one last time. "Ready over here!"

Mello shouted back, once again, "Ready over here, too!"

"Ok! Ready…set…action!"

* * *

A/N: Once again, I'm really sorry I haven't updated lately, but like I said, I was on vacation. I would have updated yesterday, but wouldn't let me log in for some reason…

Anyways, **school** is starting again! D: So I'm thinking of only updating my stories on the weekends for now…I hope that's ok!

Well, I hope this chapter is good, but I wasn't too proud of it. Reviews are loved!


	5. Shooting

A/N: I seriously love each and every one of you who review :D sniff You make me so happy!

Ok, I can honestly say I had absolutely ZERO inspiration…my brain malfunctioned after going back to school XD

However, after reading a couple of fanfics, I finally managed to think of something for this chapter. Enjoy! :)

* * *

Shooting

"How nice…a day relaxing in my secret hideout…just my computer, my dog, and myself, having a grand old time…no super, top secret missions to go on…no astounding stunts to do in perilous situations…life is _good_."

"…"

"I _said_, life is _good_…"

"…"

"_L_!"

"Hm…what?"

"Cut!" Matt shouted at the two actors on the set. Honestly, this was the third time L, the genius of all geniuses, had forgotten his line…and the line was so simple, too!

L was a bit put off. His mind seemed to be wandering a bit too much lately…perhaps it was that piece of strawberry cake in the fridge. Its amazing, pink icing…the perfect spoonful of whip cream on the smooth, creamy surface…the lone strawberry atop the wonderful creation….Yep. It was definitely the cake.

The detective looked down into the faces of his future successors. Mello was pouting with his arms crossed, Matt was wearing a frown, and Near was still twirling his hair. "I apologize. My mind is on other things."

Matt couldn't take this for an answer. "L! Can you _please_ pay attention! This is only the first scene and we want it to be perfect…" Ok, now Matt was pouting too.

L sighed in his head for a moment while closing his eyes. In a matter of seconds, he had placed at least 95 percent of his attention span on the situation at hand. The other 5 percent was directed towards hidden attackers that might be lurking in the bushes. "I am ready to film the scene."

"Finally!" Mello shouted, throwing his arms in the air, exasperated.

"Alright, scene one, take three- "

"That is incorrect, Matt," Near immediately cut in. When the redhead looked at Near confusedly, the pale boy continued. "It is not take three, but take four."

Mello was getting angrier by the second. The blond began to shout while pointing his finger at his arch nemesis, "Like it matters!"

"I'm just concerned with Matt's inability to count," he answered back, a little bit of his mathematical pride seeping into his voice.

"You know…" L began, "I happen to own a clacker, a device commonly used in producing Hollywood movies that you 'clack' before each shot. Would you like to borrow it?"

* * *

Near, although a little short, managed to place the clacker in front of the camcorder. "Scene one, take _four_. Action."

Matt stared at the little albino. 'Action' sounded much better when _he_ said it, not when Mr. Monotone did.

Harold the Gladiator began his line for the fourth time that day. "How nice…a day relaxing in my secret hideout…just my computer, my dog, and myself, having a grand old time…no super, top secret missions to go on…no astounding stunts to do in perilous situations…life is _good_."

"Woof."

"Ah, T-Rex, you're such a great dog."

"Woof."

"Let's turn on the t.v. and see what's on!"

The scene was going pretty well so far as Mello reached for his remote, made out of a small box and decorated with numbered stickers. And L was doing great!

…Ok, so perhaps saying 'woof' in a monotone voice wasn't great acting, but at least their hero was in the film in the first place. This was monotone voice day, apparently.

Mello 'turned on' the television. The t.v. was actually a cardboard cutout of a television set. Near got behind the 'screen' and pulled on a string to remove the black curtain in the front so that he would appear on the 'monitor'.

"Gasp! It's my arch nemesis! Melvin the Villain!"

"Woof."

Near began to recite his lines. "That is right. It is I, Melvin the Villain. I have captured Princess Sparkles. If you wish to rescue her, you must go through three perilous obstacles. The Riddles of Doom. Then, the Mountain of _Doom_. And finally, the Maze of DOOM. Within the maze, I have hidden a detonator and the princess. The detonator will be set off in three hours. You had better hurry, or it will destroy all who are within the maze."

"You fiend! You horrible, terrible, tyrant! You filthy, disgusting, stupid, moronic, ugly, pale, little kid! You mean, proud- "

"Mello!" Matt interrupted. "That's not your line. You had to stop at 'fiend'."

"Well…" the blond started while smirking. "I'm just _improvising_."

"Just do it over."

"_Fine_. You fiend!"

"…"

"I said…um, I said, you fiend!"

"What? Oh! Woof."

"Good luck, Harold the Gladiator," Near stated. He pulled the string to his other side and the black curtain was back in place.

Harold got up from his chair, put a fist to his chest, and proudly declared, "I will save you Princess Sparkles, or my name isn't Harold!"

"Done!" Matt exclaimed excitedly. "The first scene is finished! I'll edit it some other day, but we _finally_ got a scene done!" All three boys were smiling ear to ear.

L took of his dog ears and placed them on the desk from the set. "I think this calls for some strawberry cake," he suggested with a smile.

* * *

All three children thoroughly enjoyed sharing the strawberry cake. L even decided to try to cut the strawberry on top in equal quarters.

Over the next three days, the three boys had shot the Riddles of Doom and the Mountain of Doom scene. All that was left was to do the maze, the rescuing of the princess, and the ending scene that only Near had bothered to read so far.

As they shot the scenes of Mello running through the maze, they made sure to insert the part where Harold was hit by a flying sword on his arm.

"Ouch! Near!" the blond yelled while glaring at the small child.

"What is it this time, Mello?" Matt, now their personal cameraman, asked while pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Near threw the sword too hard!"

"Mello, the sword is made of _styrofoam_."

And with that, they continued through the rest of the scene. Finally, it was Matt's turn to play his role of Princess Sparkles while Near would handle the camera and equipment.

Harold the Gladiator ran down the intricate labyrinth Near had built as a set in the Wammy House hallway. Finally, he got to the jail cell Near had built as well. The pale boy carefully angled the camera to get both Mello and Matt in the camcorder's range.

"Princess Sparkles! Are you alright?!"

"Harold…Harold, is that _you_?!"

"Yes, my love…wait. WHAT?!"

"Cut." Near stated. "Mello, what is wrong? The scene was going along accurately, and- "

"Since _when_ did Matt become 'my love'?!" It appears that the blond boy merely memorized the lines without bothering to take in their meaning.

Matt sighed. "Mello, you don't even have the worst of it. Let's just do this, alright. I'm so embarrassed." He whispered that last line to himself.

"_Fine_. Ahem. Yes, my love in all the kingdom! I shall rescue you from my arch nemesis, Melvin!"

"You…you won't _kill_ him, will you?"

"I'm afraid I might. But no matter!" Harold swooped his sword down and broke the fake lock they had put on the jail cell.

"Oh, Harold, my darling! I would kiss you over and over and over and…and…wait, how many overs do I have to say?"

Near's head peaked out from behind the camera. "Twelve."

"Oh right. Um, over and over and-"

"Cut it out Matt! Near, can we just shorten this, please?!"

The albino's response was, "Do as you wish," as he began to play with an airplane while filming the scene.

"Uh…ok, over and over again!"

"And I to you, Princess."

"Harold…if, if I don't make it, I want- No! I need you to know something…I- I love…_Melvin!_"

"WHAT?!" Mello screamed at his best friend. "You love _Melvin?! _What the hell is wrong with you?! I'm the hero! Matt, you're so stupid, how could you get that line wrong?! You're saying you love Near!"

"Mel, I said my line perfectly fine. Did you read the script?"

"…Pri-Princess Sparkles loves…loves the _villain_?!"

"Yeah, it adds to the drama or something…"

Near interrupted their conversation. "Perhaps we should continue filming later and have a snack."

* * *

The three boys walked back into the Wammy House (careful to avoid Linda and her gang). They had some left over lemonade from their stand a few days back and were eager to have some food in their stomachs' as well, seeing as how they had been working so hard all day.

Matt stuck his body into the fridge to grab the lemonade from the back. "I can't seem to reach it! Near, you're tiny. Can you help by tryin' to climb up or something?"

Near shuffled over and tried to grasp the top shelf. Like in the toy store, he was too short. "I need someone to lift me."

Matt grabbed Near around the waist, sucked in a big breath, and heaved. The pale boy was actually pretty light. Mello looked on this scene with disgust written all over his features. Someone touching Near…ew.

Near struggled to reach his main objective. However, when he finally got a hold of something, it was the wrong item.

As Matt continued to hold the small boy in his arms, he slowly began to lose his balance. "Uh oh!"

_CRASH_

Strawberry jam was scattered on the floor behind Matt and Near, who were now lying on their bottoms since the redhead had fallen down. Mello, who had been watching from behind in the first place, stood there, glowering, covered head to toe with the red jelly. Apparently, Near had accidently grabbed this rather than the lemonade.

"_Near_…" he whispered dangerously. "I am going to KILL YOU!!" And with that, the blond boy started chasing Near around the Wammy House.

* * *

Near was tending to a slight bump on his head with an ice pack now, making sure to sit at least ten feet away from the fuming blond. They were in the bathroom, _again_,and Matt was cleaning Mello off with a towel. "Don't worry, Mel, almost done…" While Matt was busy with Mello, L had been forced by Roger to help clean the mess in the kitchen.

When the redhead had finished, Mello raced to the front of the mirror and examined himself. "It looks like I'm covered in blood or something!" he exclaimed sadly.

Near turned his head towards the clock and his eyes widened just a bit. "We have one more hour if we wish to finish shooting today."

The other two boys looked at each other, sighed, and commenced to walk outside to shoot the final scene.

* * *

L, although slightly irritated that his shirt had pink stains, was manning the camera this time, seeing as how all three boys would be needed for the ending. "Action."

"Melvin, I have found you, the princess, yet no detonator! Explain yourself!"

"Harold, do you remember when you were hit with the Sword of Doom?"

"Yes," Mello said fiercely as he clutched his pretend wound.

"When that happened, a microscopic detonator was implanted under your skin."

"WHAT?!"

L stopped filming. "Mello, that is not your line."

"But…but…but!"

"Action."

"Uh…um…oh, uh, you fiend! How dare you! How am I supposed to stop the detonator from killing us all?!"

"You must…kill yourself!"

"WHAT?! No way, no way! This is NOT in the script!" Mello screamed angrily as he rummaged through the lines.

L sighed and paused the camera once more. He raised his finger in the air, pointing it towards the sky, and asked, "Mello, did you not read the last scene? You now must kill yourself because you love Princess Sparkles too much. Then, she runs off with Melvin while your dog becomes T-Rex, the Dog of Doom."

Mello fainted.

* * *

They commenced filming the ending scene the next day. Mello was more obedient this time around. Finally, all of the scenes had been filmed.

Now, it was time to edit the clips. Matt put his hands out in front of him and cracked his fingers, cracked his neck to one side, adjusted his goggles, and said, "Let's do this."

* * *

A/N: Ok, well, that took a while! SPOILER If any of you have read Death Note: Another Note, did you notice my small reference to BB? :D END OF SPOILER

I just wanted to mention if anyone can give me criticism or feedback on how I write dialogue… It's missing…_something_. lol XD feedback is always loved :)

Oh! And random fact of the day! I've read fanfics where they mention Mello as a "blonde" boy while I write "blond" boy. You see? The blond is missing an "e". That's because "blonde" is an adjective for girls while "blond" is an adjective for boys. I thought I might point that out :)


	6. Time Frame

A/N: Thanks so much for your reviews! Believe it or not, this story is almost over D:

This is the second to last chapter, so I tried to make it extra enjoyable, but I'm not so sure how that turned out -sweatdrop-

Enjoy!

* * *

Time Frame

Mello, Near, and L decided on just standing and staring at Matt from behind as the redhead continued to stretch and talk to himself, saying things like, "Let's do this", "Bring it on", and "I can take it". The fact that Matt obviously thought he was either by himself or that he was actually cool created quite an uncomfortable atmosphere in the room. At least Matt had taken off the princess dress, put on his normal clothes, and placed the pink garment on the floor.

After about three minutes, the hyperactive blond finally had enough of the situation. "Matt, what the hell are you talking about?!" he shouted while throwing his arms in the air.

The redhead, finally realizing that there were people behind him and that he might not be as cool as he once thought, quickly turned around to three questioning faces. Scratching the back of his head, he stated, "I'm just preparing myself…you know, for editing and stuff."

L finally understood what Matt was doing and said, "I see. So, you are going to edit the film clips?"

Mello looked towards Matt, shook his head, and cried out, "No way, Matt! I can't trust you to edit the whole film! You'll make me look stupid!"

Mello had hit a nerve. Matt, slowly turning his head towards his best friend, had a look of pure, cold anger written across his features. The blond finally realized his mistake…don't _ever_ insult Matt where it came to technology. Stuttering, Mello continued, "B-but, you know, N-near and I w-would probably suck at editing, and w-we all know that h-he'd make me look worse- I mean, not as g-good as you could, s-so I'm glad you're the one who'll edit the c-clips." Nice save.

L looked at the three boys. "As I am no longer needed," he began, "I will be taking my leave now. You have about three more days until judging time. Make sure to hand in your finished copy to Mr. Roger by 6:00 pm on Saturday." As L was just about to walk out of the room, his felt his legs being clutched together. When he looked down, he saw all three boys were hugging his legs and looking up at him. Almost simultaneously, the group said, "Thank you, L," and let go. Smiling and giving each boy a pat on the head, L grabbed Linda's dress to return now that it was no longer needed, and swiftly walked out of the room.

"Alright," Matt began while adjusting his goggles for the fifth time that day, "Let's _do_ th- Ow!" Matt was now rubbing a sore spot on the back of his head from where Mello had struck. The blond proceeded to say, "If you ever do that again, I'll break your DS."

* * *

Matt sat down in front of his laptop and opened up his advanced editing program. It would take more than just a few hours to ensure the movie was perfect. First, he needed to make sure to adjust where each camera angle would be placed. Then, he had to edit out the mistakes. After that, he would need to add in lots of music and special effects. Finally, he had to make sure that there were awesome credits at the end. As a matter of fact, as the redhead was planning all of this out in his head, it would take a couple of days to get this finished. He needed absolutely _no_ distractions. He needed peace and quiet. No one could disturb him during this time…that would be like waking up a bear while hibernating: too dangerous.

Matt turned around in his swivel chair from the room he and Mello shared to face his group. "You guys," he began, "I need you two to make sure I'm not disturbed during this time period. Don't _talk_ to me, don't _touch_ me, and only bother me when we have to eat. And by that, I mean just bring the food to me, don't make me go to the dining hall. And lastly, I'll only sleep for six hours a day, maximum. So make sure when you tell me to go to sleep, it's at a decent time, like 2 am. Got it?" The serious look on his face was enough to scare Mello…even cause Near to show surprise on his virtually expressionless face. Not even Mello was capable of doing _that_ to Near, and that was saying something.

Mello and Near nodded their heads in the affirmative, stood up, and walked right out the room. Matt turned to face his computer, squinted his eyes, and with rapid speed, began to edit the movie.

* * *

"Alright, Near," Mello said as he paced in front of the white-haired boy, "We've been given a mission. Now then, I don't like you, and you don't like me. Therefore-"

"I never said I didn't like you."

"Shut up! As I was _saying_, we need to make sure no one, and I mean _no one_, disrupts Matt. I've only seen him get like this twice, and both times it wasn't pretty."

Near nodded his head in response.

"So, Near, we'll need helmets for protection, walkie talkies to warn each other of stuff, and sticks to act as weaponry, for we must guard this door with our lives. Is that understood?" Near nodded a second time.

In a few minutes, both boys had placed pans on their heads while holding sticks and sat outside the door to protect Matt from any disturbances.

* * *

The whole "protection" thing was quite boring, especially after just one hour. Mello was busy rolling around on the floor, moaning and whining for Matt to hurry up. Near continued to just sit there, twirling his hair and pretending his stick was some sort of action figure.

Every time someone walked by, Mello would stand up and shake his stick in their direction while Near nonchalantly brandished his weapon in the air. After doing this about four times, word had spread around the Wammy House to not go by Matt's room. And so, this left the two boys with a feeling of supreme boredom.

Both children could hear the constant clicking of the keyboard from within the room, so at least they knew Matt was busy working. Mello was pretty sure that if he heard video game music, he would have barged right in there to give Matt a piece of his mind.

A few hours later, Watari, having not heard the news to not pass by Matt's room, continued walking down the hallway until he spotted two boys fast asleep outside a door. Nudging both Mello and Near awake, he smiled and crouched down to their height and asked, "What are you two doing, exactly? Working on a top secret mission, perhaps?"

Near answered, "We have a mission to protect Matt from all disturbances until he has completed the film."

"I see…" Watari said as he rubbed his chin. "Would you boys like something to eat to build up your strength? You two missed supper."

"We missed dinner?!" Mello exclaimed, the pan falling off of his head as he stood up to face the old man.

The typing from inside the room stopped momentarily before it started up again after about 30 seconds. "I mean," Mello whispered this time, "we missed dinner?"

"If you want, sirs," Watari began, "I can bring you your meals for the next few days. Would you like that?"

The two boys nodded their heads eagerly.

* * *

It had been almost two days. Matt had never left the room and had slept a total of only 12 hours. However, no disturbances had been made…yet.

Mello and Near were guarding the door for, hopefully, their last day. They needed to hand in the DVD by 6:00 pm and from the constant clicking coming from the room, they were almost certain that making the deadline would be no problem. All they needed to do was make sure that no one bothered Matt.

Linda and her group had already handed in their DVD. The movie making had actually gone well. They faced a few problems, the biggest one being their lack of any good sets.

She lied on her bed thinking of who could possibly be competition for herself and her group. She and her friends had made sure to check up on all of the other rivals. By doing so, they had ensured their victory. Everyone else's movies had really sucked, due to bad acting, no props, and lack of editing skills. Just because they were all geniuses didn't mean they were brilliant movie-wise. But there was this feeling inside of her that she had missed…_something_.

Finally, a thought struck her. She had never checked on Mello's group, most likely for the reason that L was always there at the time. What if they had a better film that her?!

It was time for sabotage.

* * *

Mello rested his head on his hand as he sat down on the floor. He never bothered to bring up any type of conversation because, well, it was _Near_ who he'd have to talk to. So, he continued to lie there, bored out of his mine. Just one more day of this…not even. Just a few more hours at most.

As Mello lied there, he heard a faint noise in the distance…was that music? No, it didn't sound like music…more like a bunch of monkeys banging on pots and pans. Now then, _why_ would Mr. Roger allow monkeys in the orphanage?

Unless…no, no one would think of disturbing Matt…would they?

Fear struck Mello, and in an instant, the blond was on his feet ready to fight. "Near…I think we've got trouble coming. You stay here while I investigate, ok?" And with that, Mello ran down the hall. Before disappearing completely from Near's view, he shouted back, "And keep your walkie talkie on! I'll do the same!"

After turning a couple of corners, he spotted what looked like a parade of Wammy House kids playing pots and pans…headed towards Matt's room! And who was leading them? Why, none other than Linda!

Mello quickly formulated a plan. "Wait!" he shouted at the group. They stopped marching. "Um, uh, you don't want to come anywhere near here!" Hidden behind his back was his walkie talkie. His finger quickly pressed the ON button. Now, Near would be able to listen to everything being said.

"And why is that?" Linda asked in a sickeningly sweet voice. "What will happen if we disturb Matt? I'm just trying to throw a parade in L's honor. You three should join us."

"Uh, well, it's because…Near's really sick! Yeah, that's it."

"Sick? With what?"

"Uh…um, with…uh…turkey pox!" he shouted suddenly.

There was an awkward silence among the group.

Linda looked at Mello questioningly. "Turkey pox?" she asked, disbelief written in her voice.

"Yeah, that's right! You see, you get these purple spots all over and, um, you start talking! Uh, a lot! And we all know that Near doesn't talk often, so it must be turkey pox!"

"Can we see him?"

"Psh, no! Duh. It's highly contagious…"

Linda raised an eyebrow. "Well then," she began, "It's a good thing I got my turkey pox vaccination. I'll just go see Near to make sure he's ok."

Mello frantically tried blocking her way until she just shoved him towards a wall. The parade behind her started to follow. It seemed as if this would be an unstoppable force. Matt wouldn't be able to finish on time if he was disturbed!

This unstoppable force, however, ceased to continue walking when a little boy with white hair and purple spots rounded the corner. This boy turned to face the oncoming group, twirled his hair, and said, "Do any of you have any toys? I like toys. Toys are fun to play with. Do you think toys are fun? My favorite toy is my Robo Machine Fire Shooter with- "

The boy continued to talk. He wouldn't stop. His low yet rapid monotone voice carried through the hallway, boring all of the children to death. Linda was shocked. Turkey pox didn't exist! Did they?

The parade decided to no longer follow Linda, feeling that it was probably safe to walk the other way to continue their march. Linda, anger seeping inside of her, shoved Near (who was still talking) out of the way and began to run towards Matt's room.

Mello looked at her for a split second before shouting, "Get her!"

Near and Mello ran after the girl with sticks in their hands. Near was still talking.

Linda halted in front of Matt's room, raised her fist, and was just about to pound the door to a living pulp when…

_BAM_

Near and Mello had crashed right into her. Near continued to talk. "So I decided that Barbies were inadequate toys to play with since they didn't come equipped with firearms, bazookas, or any-"

"Near, SHUT UP!" Mello yelled at the white-haired boy. The albino immediately quieted down. Talking wasn't his thing.

Linda, fuming, shouted, "I'm going _back_ to my room! You three are so _weird_ sometimes, I can't even explain it!"

As the two boys saw her figure in the distance, Mello turned to Near, held up a hand for a high-five, while saying, "Mission accomplished."

Near high-fived back.

* * *

It was 5:52 pm. Mello was frantically pacing outside the door. Wasn't Matt _done_ yet?! Now it was 5:53 pm. That's it.

"Matt!!" Mello shouted while pounding on the door. "We've only got seven minutes left! Aren't you _done_ yet?!" Mello was knocked to the ground as the door immediately swung open, revealing Matt with DVD in hand.

The redhead shouted, "Done! Mello? _Mello_?" The blond was still on the ground.

Near stood up and said, "We have but 6 minutes left."

With that, the three boys raced to Mr. Roger's office. It was about five minutes running pace to his room. If they managed to run without disturbance, then they could make it!

Unless, of course, the parade was in the way. How long was this parade supposed to go on for, anyway?!

Taking a turn, they dodged the parade, until…

_CRASH_

Mello tripped, shouting, "Go on without me!"

Now it was just Near and Matt. But wait! A bunch of girls were huddled in a corner! If they spotted Near, they might make both boys stop to comment on how Near was a cute little fluff ball!

Near stopped running and said, "Matt, go to the left and avoid obstacles. I'll approach the girls."

And with that, both boys went in opposite directions.

Now it was just Matt, and he could hear the girls cooing at Near in the background. Did he have enough time?! He looked at his watch…one minute left! Matt looked ahead of him, saw Mr. Roger's door, and burst into the room!

It was 6:00 pm. He made it.

* * *

A/N: Well, _that's_ the longest chapter I've written so far. :D I hope you enjoyed! The next chapter shall be the last where we'll get to see who wins! Linda's team or Mello's team! Or perhaps _neither_ XD

Reviews/critiques are loved. :3


	7. The Winners

A/N: This is the final chapter!! I must give all my reviewers the biggest thanks/hug in the world!! -HUG- My first time writing a multi-chapter fic, and I got so many more reviews than I expected! I love you all and I hope you enjoy this final installment of Ready, Set, Action! :)

* * *

The Winner

"Mel, just calm the hell down. What're you acting so jittery for? The judging didn't even begin!" Matt whispered to Mello as both boys sat in the large auditorium, filled with the Wammy House children. They were waiting for the start of the movies to begin. L, Watari, and Mr. Roger were the judges. Mello took a look over his right shoulder to spot Linda and her team sitting there, glaring in his direction. Mello was so nervous that the chocoholic couldn't even get this favorite treat into his mouth without it leaving a stain on his face. Luckily for him, he had Matt as his best friend who would always carry some tissues to wipe Mello's face every time he got like this.

Near, Mello, and Matt were sitting in the third row of seats, Near to the left, Mello in between, and Matt to the right. A little off to the side of the auditorium sat L, Watari, and Mr. Roger. With any luck, having L in their movie would increase their score, if only by a little.

Mello contemplated on each of the little adventures that unfortunately occurred during this whole chaotic experience. Getting paired with _Near_, stealing Linda's dress, making that lemonade, losing Near in the mall, crashing to the ground because of a swivel chair and a _certain someone_, getting attacked by Linda, finding out certain unwanted aspects of the script, getting jam splattered on him, having to guard the door and face a parade led by Linda, and running to get the movie submission there on time….

Didn't anything _fun_ happen? Mello tried recalling some more events even further. Well, there was the fact that their idol took them to the mall and got them sweets. Their hero even put on dog ears and acted in their movie. He got to see Matt in a dress, which _was_ pretty funny. Also, getting a costumer for their lemonade _had_ been pretty exciting. Near's sets were completely amazing and added so much to the film. Heck, even guarding the door with Near had been enjoyable. He felt like a real life body guard, sworn to work with his enemy to protect his best friend from an oncoming threat!

As Mello sat in his seat, calming himself down by thinking of all the good things he had experienced, the contest began.

* * *

There were roughly 25 entries in total. Most of the movies, however, were very mediocre. Mello wasn't threatened by any of them.

L, Watari, and Mr. Roger judged by holding up a sign with a number of either 1 through 10. After a movie was finished being watched, the team would go up on the stage to answer the judges' questions.

Finally, Mello's team was up. They were the last to go. Linda's team had gotten a score of 8, 8.5, and 9.5, totaling to a final result of 26. Mello's team becoming victorious all depended on this moment.

Matt was excited. He absolutely couldn't wait to see his finished work on the big screen! He had worked so hard for so long that he felt it didn't matter if they won or not, but just so long as everyone got the opportunity to see his awesome editing skills.

The movie began. Dramatic subtitles began appearing on the screen, saying things like, "An M n' M production presents…", "Starring L…", and even, "Totally directed by Matt the Tech Genius". Mello couldn't help but slap his forehead at that last statement. Near was focused on the fact that their production company was called "M n' M". He had to admit, that was pretty clever.

Finally, letters shot onto the screen with flames and loud music, reading, "Harold the Gladiator".

The first scene started up, a nice, calm music in the background. Mello spotted his pink princess band-aid and sighed. Well, that couldn't be helped.

As the scene progressed, the audience completely gasped, most people in awe, to see that L, their hero detective, was starring in the movie. They had all thought the subtitle had been lying to throw them off. Apparently not. This, however, was only one step up they had upon the competition.

The scenes flew by in an array of special effects, perfectly coordinated music, amazing sets, and pretty good acting. Mello and Near found themselves dumbfounded at how well Matt had edited all the clips together so flawlessly. He even managed to create an explosion for one of the more adventurous scenes!

Everyone in the audience had to admit that the group's acting was really good. Mello playing Harold was perfect, as well as Near being the villain. It appears that the blond hothead had been able to channel his anger of Near into his character. And Near, playing a calm and composed villain was definitely a perfect match. Matt's enthusiasm for playing the princess also showed, even if he really hadn't expected his role to be so…_peculiar_.

As the movie ended and the credits rolled, Mello felt his stomach churn. Phase one complete. Their movie had been good, _really_ good. Matt definitely saved the day for his team.

Mello, Matt, and Near slowly walked upon the stage to face the audience. Mello was never nervous in front of an audience…that is, until today. When his audience consisted of L _judging_ them, it was a little nerve-wracking. Matt had always been anxious when on stage. Near, a little uneasy himself, was able to relax a bit by slowly twirling a lock of his white hair.

Mr. Roger looked at the three boys and asked Near, "So, Near, who was responsible for those sets? Why were they envisioned in such a way and how did your group proceed to build them?"

Mello was thinking in his head that Near's question was too easy and completely stupid.

Near responded, "I was responsible for the sets. I envisioned them after studying a little bit of cinematography the day before. I proceeded to build the sets and received the help of Matt, who I directed in how to construct some of the more elaborate pieces."

"How did you build that maze?"

"I merely recalled some of the multiple complex mazes I had completed in puzzle books throughout my lifetime, combined them into an ultimate maze that could fit throughout the hallways of Wammy's without blocking peoples' routes, and had Matt place them where I instructed."

It was now Watari's turn. "Matt," he began to ask, "I'd recognize your editing work anywhere. Tell me, how long did it take you to edit this film as flawlessly as you did?"

"Oh, um, about three days, I guess…I think you helped out, right? I mean, you brought us our meals and stuff while I was busy…." Matt was extremely nervous, fidgeting with this fingers, and now he was somewhat bashful at being complimented on his work.

It was L's turn. It was L's turn to ask _Mello_. The blond boy was so worried that he thought he might jump off the stage and run away. No! Now was not the time for cowardice!

L, giving Mello a soft, comforting smile first, asked, "How would you rate my acting skills on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest?"

Mello stood there in complete shock. Was the question really that simple?! But wait! What if L realized he had been too monotone with his voice while filming? Was this a question of Mello's honesty, or did the detective want to just hear that he was a brilliant actor?

There were two options. One was to tell L that his acting needed some work and risk getting L mad. The second option was to tell L that he was a brilliant actor, but if L realized he was lying, would that mean their score would be lowered for Mello's lack of honesty?!

Mello sucked in a deep breath and answered, "Acting cannot be rated on a scale of 1 to 10. Each individual actor has his or her own special skills to contribute to a film. L, you added a lot of joy to the movie, and even if your voice was a little monotone, that makes you who you are. I would have to say that if I could, I would beg you to be in any film I shall ever direct in the future. You make us all happy, and I think that's more important than having brilliant acting skills."

The blond squeezed his eyes tight. He had told the plain truth. Mello loved working with L. Just being in the same room was a joy to him! As Mello reflected on his answer, he thought it sounded nothing like him. It was way too calm, too composed. But it _was_ the truth.

He heard the whispers of the judges by the table. Matt nudged him in the ribs, causing Mello to open his eyes. Finally, Watari stated, "The judges are ready with their tallies."

Mr. Roger held up a score of 8.

Watari held up a score of 9.

It now all depended on L!

L placed his hands on his sheet of paper, slowly held it up by the tips of his fingers, and showed his final score.

L held up a score of 10.

A score of 10.

A _score_ of **10**!

That…that meant…they had _won_!!

By one more point, a single point, all thanks to L, they were the winners!

Matt was smiling from ear to ear and even Near had to grin in this joyous moment. Mello was completely frozen in shock. It was all so surprising, he couldn't believe it!

"Mello," L started, "I will tell you why I rewarded you all with a score of 10. I believe that you and your team have all worked extremely hard on this movie, more than most of the students. You even tried to raise money to buy yourselves a camcorder while everyone else had the luxury of already obtaining one. Also, I found your answer intriguing. I was not expecting it. I thought you would say 10, or perhaps even 11, right away without thinking. But, you took your team into consideration and decided on a very well articulated and thought out response." L smiled when he was done.

Linda, looking at the scene before her, huffed and walked out of the auditorium. L was just being biased because he was _in_ the movie.

But did it really matter now? Mello, after listening to what L had to say, smiled and jumped in the air. "Alright! Oh yeah! We _won_!"

"Mello!" Mr. Roger began, "Please calm down! We must now decide on who will receive the trophy. I have decided that the trophy should be awarded to…Near! For his brilliant sets!"

Mello stopped in mid-jump. No. Freaking. Way.

Near looked at Mello towards his side. He had to admit, although the blond was annoying, he was the one who had cared the most about this movie in the first place. "I cannot accept the trophy, Mr. Roger. All credit shall go to Mello. He was our team leader and it is only fitting that the hero wins in the end."

Mello glanced at his enemy, shock written all over his face.

Mr. Roger, clearing his throat, "Well, if you don't want the trophy, that's fine. But don't you feel that Matt contributed more than Mello? Perhaps I should give the trophy to him instead?"

Now it was Matt's turn. "No way, Mr. Roger. I never would've finished if Mello hadn't helped guard my door for me."

"I see…well then, Mello, please come down and receive your prize."

Mello glanced at his team members, stunned at what they had done. Both boys nodded for him to go down and claim his award. With that, Mello raced towards the judging table and was promptly handed _his_ trophy.

Matt and Near followed from behind.

Mello held the trophy out in front of him with a sense of pride and bliss. His smile grew and grew until it stretched across his whole face.

L picked up the ecstatic boy in his arms, placed him on his lap, and held out an arm for the others.

Once all three boys clambered on their hero's lap, he asked them, "Who would like to celebrate with some cake?"

-The End-

* * *

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this story!! I had an absolute blast writing it! I still can't believe I'm finished with it! -gasp-

I want to give a special thanks to EVERYONE who reviewed while I wrote this, especially puddingcup, who was my first reviewer and commented in every single chapter! Thank you so much!

I want to give EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE of my reviewers a cookie, so here, please accept my offer. -gives cookie-

Once again, thank you so much! Feedback is always loved and appreciated :)

-Smrtypantz


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